Shanghai has confirmed coronavirus deaths for the first time during its current epidemic after three people infected with the disease died on Sunday.
The deaths come after approximately 26 million people in the city have lived under extremely strict blockade restrictions for several weeks.
People are barred from leaving their homes and relying on the government to deliver food, with small protests erupting as some people cannot get enough.
Police in protective suits were spotted scattering people protesting against COVID’s harsh rules in the city last week.
According to the measures, anyone who has tested positive for COVID must be quarantined in centralized establishments where many people have complained of poor conditions.
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0:47 Locked Shanghai residents shout from their windows
Jane Polubotko, a Ukrainian expat in Shanghai, was sent to one of the centers three weeks ago after a positive test.
Four thousand people lived in the huge exhibition hall, with beds in cabins next to each other, main toilets and no showers.
More than 100 makeshift hospitals with a capacity of 160,000 patients are being used as facilities, while residential buildings have also been turned into isolation centers.
Read more: Strict blockade of Shanghai could have “huge global effects” on supply chains
Shanghai, China’s financial center, confirmed 19,831 new daily asymptomatic infections with COVID yesterday, up from 21,592 on Saturday.
The number of new symptomatic infections was 2,417, compared to 3,238 on Sunday.
More than 200 million nucleic acid tests have been conducted in Shanghai since March 10 in an attempt to curb the largest outbreak in China since the virus was first discovered in Wuhan in 2019.
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0:40 Protesters clash with police in Shanghai
Chinese President Xi Jinping said virus control and prevention efforts should not be stopped, while China will strive to minimize the impact of the policy on economic and social development.
Domestic support for the zero-tolerance approach has waned in recent weeks due to food shortages and family divisions.
People in Xi’an, the capital of Shanxi province in central China, are urged to avoid unnecessary travel outside their housing estates, and employees are encouraged to work from home or live at work.
While in Suzhou, which reported more than 500 infections during its latest epidemic, employees were asked to work from home.
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